Dangerous Stranger?
by Furutsukeki
Summary: ON HIATUS! A stranger is found in the deepest part of Mirkwood. Legolas is enthralled. Thranduil is suspicious. Who is this woman, and where does she come from?
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the books in my room.

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**Prologue**

"Please be calm."

"How can I be calm?" An angry voice said.

"Please don't be angry." She sighed.

"Don't be angry? I'm not angry. Why should I be. Just because my father tried to kill the one I love, or because you just sat there and gave him the go-ahead?"

Thranduil slowly followed the shouting until he stood next to the door. He didn't dare go in yet. He silently listened.

"It's not his fault." The female voice softly reminded him.

"..What?" The male voice scoffed. "His knife just accidentally moved towards your neck?"

"He is just trying to protect you."

"I don't understand."

"He wants to protect your happiness."

"How does killing you help? YOU make me happy." The silky voice for once not soft, but razor sharp in its anger.

Thranduil flinched.

"He is yet to fully accept me and, Legolas, please understand, I'm still a stranger here. No matter how long I'm here. I remain a mystery."

"That's not your fault."

"I know. But everything unknown is potentially dangerous. You know that." The female voice said in a reprimanding tone.

"You wouldn't hurt a fly!" Legolas angrily exclaimed.

Silence prevailed for a while. Thranduil was torn. Should he go in? Or not yet? He wanted to make peace with Legolas and so he had to apologise.. to her.

"You know why he did it?"

"No. Enlighten me."

"He came into my room with the knife and I knew what he wanted to do. But he explained himself first. Killing for no reason is looked down upon of course.."

".. What did he say?"

"He said that I would prevent you from being truly happy. That I was a threat to you, even though you wouldn't see it that way. As a parent it is his duty to make sure you are protected from every danger. He sincerely believes that I am a burden to you and who knows, I might be. I believed his words and if your father truly believes you would be better off without me, who am I to stop him? That's why I didn't resist."

"It is not for him to decide what will be my happiness." Legolas said after ruminating on her words.

"That may be true. But I understand his reasoning. I.. Some of my memories came back."

"What?!"

"Yes."

"What do you remember? Your name? Where you came from?" Legolas said excitedly.

"No, not that," she said with a sad voice. "I remembered the reason for my flight."

Thranduil could hear Legolas stop his pacing and sitting down on her bed.

"Tell me."


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Disclaimer: _Look into the box_. "Well, whaddya know? Empty."

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_Run. As fast as you can. Don't look back. Looking back will only slow you down._

A raven-haired woman was running as fast as she could into the forest, trying to lose her pursuer. While she was running she put all her prayers in the pendant that she was holding. She usually tied the emerald pendant around her neck, but today for some reason she had worn it as a bracelet. It might have been fate.

The pendant has been passed down for generations in her family, from mother to daughter. It was a lozenge-shaped emerald coloured jewel, set into a frame of silver that fashioned the jewel as a pendant. The chain of the pendant changed with the preferences of the wearer. The legend was that a witch had crafted the pendant and imbued it with magical powers. If a wish was desired and the motives and feelings of the holder were pure, the wish was granted.

When she was escaping the horrid scene in front of her eyes, the lozenge-shaped pendant had cut her hand when she fell in her haste to get away. Crimson blood welled up from the wound, but adrenalin muted the pain. After she had scrambled up to her feet again, she held the pendant in her hand and ran away in the direction of the forest. Whilst zigzagging through the trees she wished upon the pendant in her hand.

_Please let me be safe. Please let me find a safe place. Please help me. Why? Why did this happen? Please take me away. Please safe me. Please let this be a dream. Please let me find a place without deceit, with people that speak the truth in words. A world where I can be true to myself. Where no one will hurt me or mine. _

While she was repeating this mantra in her head she sprinted deeper and deeper into the woods. Suddenly there was a disturbance in the air. She knew it was dangerous, but stole a glance backwards anyway. Her eyes locked with the angry muddy brown-coloured eyes of her pursuer. Before she could even form a thought, she tripped over a branch and fell forward. She faced the ground and closed her eyes. Instead of landing on the forest floor though, she fell through it and even with her eyes open everything was dark.

All of a sudden she stopped feeling a falling motion and was suspended in the air. An ice cold sensation permeated every part of her body and she knew no more.

/\\\

Legolas was patrolling the forest. The invasion of the menacing dark spiders knew no boundaries and the patrols were necessary to increase awareness of the whereabouts of those sickening animals. He had wandered further than his patrol obligated him to, but he was enjoying the lush green trees and vibrant nature that he sensed and saw in the part of the woods where he was now. He was simply savouring the fresh air of untainted pureness.

After walking for some time he came upon a clearing in the woodland and saw a small pond at the back of the clearing with a strangely shaped black island floating in the middle of it. Wanting to quench his thirst he strode towards the pond. His enhanced eyesight quickly picked up the fact that the shape was in fact someone drifting in the middle of the pond. A woman with long black hair framing her face and form, clad all in black, save for a shining emerald jewel glittering just under her neck. She had a sickly pale pallor and did not seem to be enjoying a swim in the cool water.

Legolas quickly moved into the water. The water only reached to his middle and his movement made the soil swirl in the water, changing the colour from almost transparent to a murky brown. He gently lifted the woman from the water and cradled her in his arms as he moved back towards the earth surrounding the pond. He laid her down and felt for a pulse. Her skin was ice cold to the touch, but her heart was beating, although faintly. He tried to rouse her but his efforts were in vain. He decided to take her back with him within the borders of the Mirkwood Kingdom.

Although the woman was not an elf, she was clearly in need of help. And help will be given to those who are in need of it.

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A/N: I have decided to change the categories of the story to the film version of the Hobbit, because I want to include Tauriel into the characters of my story. Also it's the version I'm most familiar with. I apologise for setting this as a LOTR story at first, I wasn't really sure where to place my story yet..

On another note: I'm happy and scared that people are reading this story! Let's all run alongside this story to wherever it will lead. I'm amazed people have read/will read/will keep on reading this story, many thanks!


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Disclaimer: Nemireth is mine. Dear Ídhil as well. Hands off. The rest is up for grabs tho.

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_Although the woman was not an elf, she was clearly in need of help. And help will be given to those who are in need of it. _

Tauriel saw Legolas approaching while carrying a person in his arms. Curious.

"How was your patrol?" She asked, while eyeing his burden.

"It was fine. The spiders have not yet breached the east part of the forest." Legolas calmly informed her as they both started to walk towards the gates of the kingdom. He fell silent again. As they reached the outer parts of the kingdom a scout saw them and ran back inside the gates. No doubt reporting back to the king that a stranger was about to enter the grounds.

"So, who did you find?" Tauriel asked a little impatiently. Irritation sparked in her brown eyes. Honestly, Legolas couldn't expect her to have no questions at all about this strange person.

Legolas looked at her and smirked. He was always the most patient one of the two.

"I don't know. She was floating in a pond in a clearing near where I patrolled. She's unconscious and I couldn't wake her. I hope a healer will have more success."

This answer didn't satisfy Tauriel's curiosity, but she understood that Legolas didn't have any other information for now. They were past the gates and instead of walking straight over the bridges towards the centre of the kingdom, they walked to the left, going towards the infirmary.

The infirmary was placed on the parts of the land where the trees were less dense, because the healers believed in the many healing qualities of natural light. Patients who were weak couldn't travel up the branches of the trees to soak up the blessing from the sun, so the healers found a place within the kingdom where there was an abundance of sunlight falling into a clearing of the trees.

Most elves have a basic knowledge of the healing properties of plants and some were even capable of mixing up a concoction or two that were beneficial for their health. Needless to say the healer elves have a more thorough understanding of the medicinal qualities of all things growing in nature. In addition, healers have an innate sense of compassion and the desire to help other beings. They were just as capable of fighting an orc as the average elf, but their passion was in healing, not in destruction.

Tauriel and Legolas entered the infirmary. Ídhil looked up and immediately pointed to a bed left from her, where Legolas gently lays down the unconscious person. Ídhil hurries over, her long braid bouncing on her back with her movements.

"What happened? Who is this?" she asked while doing a quick check-up on the strange woman.

"I found her unconscious in the middle of a pond. I hauled her out and tried to wake her, but to no avail. I don't know how long she has been in the water for or how long she's been unconscious," Legolas answered her inquiries. "Don't know who she is or where she's from."

Ídhil nodded at his answer and continued her analysis of the woman. She mumbled all sorts of things to herself under her breath.

Tauriel and Legolas patiently waited for the healer to finish her ministrations. While the woman lay motionless on the bed, Tauriel had time to inspect her. The woman wore strange black clothing. Both under- and upper garments were of a strange design and were closely fitted to the woman's body. Tauriel thought that they were meant to be this way, but it could also be because of the water that the clothes stuck to her body. She had long black hair and a sickly pallor to her skin. Tauriel wondered what her eyes would look like once she opened them.

"I think she is suffering from fatigue and perhaps also hypothermia, depending on the length of time she has spent in the water," Ídhil started to report on her findings. "For now I'll keep her here, keep her warm and hopefully she'll wake up soon."

"Alright, thanks Ídhil," Legolas said.

A messenger had arrived. "The king entreats you and Tauriel to come and report your findings, my prince," he said while bowing to Legolas.

"Right, the king must be curious about who you brought in as well," Tauriel said to Legolas.

"Go, I'll send a message when she wakes up," Ídhil said.

Legolas nodded his assent and left the room with Tauriel following behind him.

/\\\

Two days had passed. Thranduil was intrigued by the stranger, but not necessarily content with the mysterious nature of the woman. However, as long as she had not woken up there was nothing to do but wait.

At the end of the second day a message from Ídhil had made its way to Legolas.

_Woke up, but very confused. Drank some water, but almost immediately fell into slumber again. Good hopes for waking up definitely sometime tomorrow._

The next day Legolas decided to visit the patient after his patrols in the woods. He entered the infirmary in the late afternoon. Ídhil looked up, shook her head shortly and continued her work. Legolas took a chair and placed it beside the bed upon which the woman was sleeping. Some colour had returned to her skin, but she was still very pale. The sun shone into the room from the window and warmed Legolas's back. He sat there and employed his time by thinking.

After an hour or so, the sun was setting and casting a golden glow inside the infirmary, the woman next to him stirred. Her eyes fluttered and then opened all the way. Noticing the shadow of Legolas she looked to the right.

"Hello," he said carefully.

She blinked and her face had a confused look. When Ídhil came and stood beside Legolas her face became even more confused, if possible.

"Do you know where you are?" Ídhil softly asked her.

The woman slowly sat up against the wall and looked around her. Her amber-coloured eyes took in her surroundings. The beds in the infirmary, the medical equipment and the two persons standing next to her. She shook her head.

"Can you not talk?" Legolas questioned.

The woman frowned and opened her mouth. A croak came out and she coughed. Ídhil handed her a cup of water. She threw her a thankful look and drank it.

"No.." her voice was soft. "I don't know where I am."

"I'm Legolas and this is Ídhil, a healer," he informed her. "You're currently in the Mirkwood kingdom. Who are you?"

The woman opened her mouth to answer. Then closed it again. She furrowed her brow.

"I.. I don't remember," she said. "I don't remember anything."

The two elves looked at each other. Apparently the mystery continued.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Disclaimer: I do not own anything. I repeat. Do not own.

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_"__I.. I don't remember," she said. "I don't remember anything."_

Waking up and not knowing anything is disorientating. It is also disconcerting to not remember your own name, assuming that you had one at all.

After a silent conversation between the two people in front of her, Legolas was it..? And.. Ídhil? The woman, the healer, clapped her hands.

"Well no matter. I'm sure you'll remember everything once you're patched up again," she said in a cheery voice.

Legolas mouth turned up into a reassuring smile. "And for now, you'll just have to borrow a name. Any name especially in your favour?"

She shook her head.

"That's alright. Names are usually given anyway," Legolas said. "What about Nemireth?"

"Nemireth..?" The syllables flowed from her tongue in a strange manner. "What does it mean?"

"For you to find out while you are restoring your health," Legolas said, with a twinkle in his silver eyes. "Well, I really should be on my way. May good fortune speed your recovery!" And he left with a quick bow to her, the newly named Nemireth, and a nod to Ídhil.

After Legolas left, Nemireth devoted her day to eating healthy and energy reviving food and drinking various fluids including strange mixtures of water or milk with foreign herbs. She soon decided to never be ill again so she would never have to taste those bitter health smoothies again. After expressing her distaste for the mixtures, Ídhil frowned.

"What are smoothies?" she asked.

That was her first clue that Ídhil and Legolas lived in a place far away from the one she came from. The second was soon to follow.

Having tended to her bodies' first needs, Ídhil showed Nemireth the way to a bathroom so she could freshen up and change into new clothes. The fabric and design were strange to her and different from the clothes she had almost drowned in, but the green-coloured outfit was light and comfortable to wear. Nemireth looked at myself in the mirror for a few moments and questions started to pop up. She folded her old garments and walked back into the health ward's main room.

"Ídhil?"

"Yes Nemireth? Do the clothes not fit?" Ídhil replied. She had been using the name more often than the conversations warranted, seeing as they were the only two persons present in the room, but she was probably helping her get used to the new and unfamiliar name.

"Oh no, they are a perfect fit," Nemireth quickly reassured her. "There's just this thing. Just now in the bathroom I noticed something. We.. we are different aren't we?"

Ídhil looked at her for a moment. Then she nodded. "We are of different races. I am an elf and you're a human."

After having seen herself in the mirror and observing Ídhil right now, the differences between them were glaringly obvious. Ídhil's skin was pale with a silvery sheen, almost of ivory quality. While Nemireth's skin was pale as well, it was clear that it was a sickly pallor, her real skin colour somewhat darker, maybe olive-toned after she had fully regained her health. Ídhil wore her light-brown hair in a braid that reached to her middle, her ears were visible and slightly pointed at the end. She was also taller and more slender than Nemireth.

"Then where did I come from?" Nemireth wondered.

"We're not exactly sure. You were found by Legolas while floating in a pond and, while you are human, your attire is very strange," Ídhil said while thinking out loud. "Your memory loss isn't exactly helping, but I'm positive that the King will try to solve the riddle you are as soon as possible."

"The King?"

"Oh right, you know nothing about us and our history and customs. Let me enlighten you," Ídhil said. They sat down and Ídhil told Nemireth about the elves in Mirkwood. That their Lord was the great Thranduil, King of the Elves of Northern Mirkwood. That his son was Legolas, the best archer in Northern Mirkwood. Mirkwood was located in Middle-Earth, a place where humans, elves and dwarves lived together. Not on the same grounds, but breathing the same air nonetheless. Naturally, to balance the light there was also the dark in Middle-Earth. Strange unnatural beings lived in the shadows and more than once humans, elves and dwarves alike had to take up arms to combat these mysterious dark forces. For now, there was peace, and the inhabitants of Mirkwood usually kept their own council anyway. This and more was told by Ídhil to Nemireth. The soothing tones of Ídhil's voice painted the lines and coloured the picture that represented Mirkwood.

This ode to Mirkwood could have gone on for quite a while had Legolas not coughed to gain the attention of Ídhil and Nemireth. They both looked up to see the Prince of Mirkwood standing there.

"The King requests your presence Nemireth," Legolas said.

Nemireth looked at Legolas and when their eyes locked something seemed to spark between them, but just as quick as it was brought to life it was dispersed again.

Nemireth blinked and seemed to snap out of it. She stood up and said goodbye to Ídhil.

"Will I return to the health ward again?" She asked Legolas.

"I'm not sure, it all depends on the mood of the King," Legolas replied. "Come, let us not test his patience." He briskly walked out of the infirmary. Nemireth quickly followed him. They emerged on a path and through a series of turns and twists they slowly approached the centre of the kingdom, walking towards the largest tree Nemireth had ever seen (but with no memories one could never be sure). Whilst passing the elves and their homes she admired the way the elves seemed to live with nature instead of forcing nature to bend to their will. If not for the various patrolling guards and visible weapons, Nemireth would have believed that being an elf equalled serenity and peace.

They entered the castle in the tree and massive oaken doors gave way to a throne room and at the back of the room, on the middle of a dais, a throne seemed to have grown out of the wood. The elf seated on the throne was everything Nemireth thought a king should look like. Tall, slender, majestic, grave, graceful.. Nemireth thought she didn't have enough adjectives in her vocabulary to describe the Mirkwood King.

Legolas stopped in front of the throne and bowed, so Nemireth followed his example.

"Ah, the mysterious human stranger," the King said. He looked at her and his eyes seemed to pierce her soul, judging the depths of her being and deciding whether she was worthy. Of what? Who knows. No one could tell what lied at the depths of Thranduil's mind.

After the silence stretched on and Nemireth became more and more uncomfortable, the King seemed to have completed his assessment, for now.

"It has come to my attention that you have no memories of your previous life. You have not even retained your true name," the King continued speaking as if there was no break from his previous sentence.

Nemireth nodded, not trusting her voice to speak out at the moment.

"A shadow follows you and that shadow might have stolen your memories. It seems you have escaped its clutches in time, but for how long will you stay in the light?" The King mused. Nemireth could only frown after hearing this cryptic message.

"And I suppose you remember nothing of that pendant you are wearing?"

Nemireth looked down at the pendant hanging around her neck.

"No your majesty. Unfortunately not."

"It's curious, the pendant seems strangely familiar to me, although I am certain of never having laid eyes upon it before," the King said while squinting at her necklace. (Of course the squinting happened in an entirely dignified manner). "Well, as a favour I will permit you to stay within Mirkwood for the time being," he said, suddenly snapping out of it. "Of course, in due time I will expect you to return that favour, in whatever form I deem adequate. You can return to Ídhil's care until I find a suitable home and guide for your stay."

"Thank you, your majesty," Nemireth said in a relieved voice.

"Also, Tauriel will act as your guide and guard. For your own protection, naturally." Thranduil beckoned Tauriel forward. Tauriel inclined her head to Nemireth, so she nodded back. "That will be all."

With this clear dismissal, Legolas, Tauriel and Nemireth walked out of the throne room.

"Well, it seems Father is interested in you, for now," Legolas said. "I must attend to some business, so I will leave Tauriel to guide you. I hope you will enjoy your stay in Mirkwood." With that, Legolas turned around and walked away.

"If you will follow me Nemireth," Tauriel said. "I will give you a tour around the grounds and then I will show you your new home."

Nemireth nodded and quietly followed Tauriel. A new home and a new life. If only she could remember her old one..

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A/N: I kinda spoiled Nemireth's name last chapter where it is mentioned in the disclaimer, but not used in the chapter. Oops. Well, the name is officially in use from this chapter on peeps!


	5. ON HIATUS

Hi guys, I just wanted to post this to notify any hopeful readers that I am experiencing the greatest writer's block ever for this story. Therefore, I have decided to put this story on hiatus. I will start uploading again when I have the whole story ready to post, so the next time a notification comes in the story will have regular updates and will be finished in no time at all. Thanks for reading!


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